


We Will Share Everything

by Love_of_fandoms



Series: Hun, Sweetie, Din [4]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Adorable Baby Yoda (The Mandalorian TV), Canon-Typical Violence, Din is soft, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Gangs, Kidnapping, Mandalorian Culture, Mando'a, Marriage, Moff Gideon Lives, Reunions, Romance, What do you know I actually added plot, dun dun dun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:46:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24097540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Love_of_fandoms/pseuds/Love_of_fandoms
Summary: In the sequel to Pet Names, our beloved Mandalorian and Imogen continue to care for their green baby, making tentative friends and accidental enemies along the way... at least Ruu'Eva's cute, right?
Relationships: Cara Dune/Omera (Star Wars), The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Original Character(s), The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Hun, Sweetie, Din [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1720084
Comments: 12
Kudos: 80





	1. Canto Bight

A girl ran through the crowded streets of Canto Bight, panting as her head whipped back and forth in a constant, frantic swivel, hoping to see one of two things. She needed either a really good hiding place, or a certain beskar clad partner of hers.

Already labored breathing became heavier with anxiety as the girl heard the shouts of her pursuers, their numbers growing.

“She went this way!” a particularly close voice called.

“Get Undo!” another shouted.

The girl turned down a narrow alley that smelled like someone had dumped years worth of fathier dung in it. She suppressed a cough, holding her precious cargo closer to her chest to shield it from the stench, and flung herself through a cracked doorway before her pursuers could turn the corner and see her.

She held her breath despite her urge to suck in gasps of air to fill her tired lungs as they ran past her hiding place, most of the heavy footfalls continuing down the alleyway and turning off somewhere, but one or two remained behind.

“Search the alley!” a deep voice commanded, and it was met with a grunt as she heard things being shifted around in search of her. A crackle sounded.

 _~Have you found her?~_ the voice of Undo, leader of a street gang in the Underworld of Canto Bight, sounded through a communicator.

“Negative,” the deep voice responded. A frustrated hiss crackled through the speaker.

 _~Fine, come back to base, she’ll probably come once she realizes we have her precious Mandalorian~_ the girl stifled a gasp at hearing that, instead just clenching her jaw and waiting for the pair of thugs to leave the alley. She silently slipped out from behind the cracked door, trailing the pair at a distance so she could at least find out where they were keeping her partner.

Ruu’Eva yawned from his place in the sling across Imogen’s chest, and she was thankful that he didn’t make much noise during it. She hushed him, bouncing slightly as she continued to trail the thugs, a devaronian and rodian.

The pair soon grew to a trio, then there were six of them, and then all twenty of the thugs Undo had sent after Imogen and the baby were trudging back to his lair. Imogen was thankful as the streets got more crowded with random people as well as gang members, allowing her to blend in more easily.

“How did Undo manage to catch the Mandalorian?” the rodian asked his devaronian partner.

“No clue,” he laughed with a shrug. “I just hope I’m there when he takes that helmet off,” Imogen’s jaw clenched once more, palming a vibroblade but withholding from using it, at least while there were so many people around.

“Do you think he looks like that green thing?” the rodian asked.

“That would explain why he hides his face, especially in front of that pretty mechanic he keeps around,” the devaronian laughed.

“Why does Undo want her, anyway? Isn’t the reward only for the Mando?” a human in the group piped up, and the Rodian shook his head.

“She’s one of those fanged bitches the Empire is after,” he said, and the human nodded in understanding.

“What are they offering for them now?”

“3,000 credits,” Imogen sucked in a breath, she hadn’t known that the Empire had upped the reward. Last she had heard they were paying 500 credits for any of her species given to them. The human whistled.

“That’s almost as much as the Mando!” the group laughed in glee at the thought of a bigger payday before ducking one by one under a curtain that led to an unsuspecting building in sight of the big casino. Imogen’s purple eyes scanned the building, looking for other entry points, but it didn’t even look like there were any windows on this side of it. Subtly, Imogen crept around the perimeter of the building, surprised to see that it was much bigger than it appeared at first glance, stretching back for a long while before coming to the end of the building. On the other side there was a metal door that Imogen recognized as looking like the service entrances at the casinos, where she and Din had been looking for a recent bounty.

Glancing around, Imogen saw no one and so quickly crept up to the door and tried the handle, surprised to see that the door just swung open. She knew she was walking into a trap, Undo had basically said so on the communicator, but she was hoping they wouldn’t expect her for another hour or so, with the search party just returning. The door opened into what looked like a break room, and Imogen snuck out into the hall and crept towards where she heard muffled voices.

“-know how much she’s worth?” Undo was asking somebody, and Imogen glanced around the corner to see the hutt standing in front of Din, who’s arms and legs were tied with rope to pillars on either side of him. Her Mandalorian said nothing, empty black visor gazing at the hutt. “3,000 credits, yet you keep her around for babysitting,” Undo continued, and Imogen realized he was talking about her. Din still said nothing, but his fist twitched as if he wanted to punch the smug look off of Undo’s face. He noticed. “Or maybe you keep her around to keep your cock warm?” he prodded, and Din’s shoulder’s tensed. “Is that it?” Undo laughed, tongue disgustingly sweeping over his lips. “A little too soft for my tastes, but I see the appeal,”.

Imogen ignored the hutt’s words, instead taking stock of how many guards were in the room. It appeared to just be Undo, a twi’lek, and two human guards in the room, and Imogen nodded to herself. She could work with that. Hutts were slow, not really a fighting species, and she could take on the other three pretty easily with how they were set up in the room.

She first snuck behind one of the human guards, being careful to stay in the shadows so her reflection wouldn’t be given away in Din’s armor. The guard was a bit behind the others, not in view of anyone, and if she was quick enough she could kill him and the twi’lek, who stood a little in front of him, before the other human or Undo could react.

Imogen took a deep breath, raising her vibroblade before swiping it quickly across the man’s neck, darting back when he began to gurgle and lunging for the twi’lek. He had begun to turn towards the guard when he heard the man choking on his own blood, and let out a shout of surprise before Imogen’s blade was shoved through his throat. The other human guard and Undo both gasped, whipping around to see Imogen running towards the human. The guard raised their blaster, firing at Imogen but the shot went wide as Imogen was already within arms reach, shoving the arm holding the blaster out of the way and swiping across the guard’s chest.

As their body slumped to the ground, Imogen turned toward Undo, chest heaving. Undo said nothing, simply gazing at the girl, and she shrugged, quickly cutting Din free.

“Since I don’t want killing a gang leader in my repertoire,” Imogen began with all the false confidence she could muster. “You get to live, today,” before Undo could respond she was dragging Din out the backdoor and towards the bay where they had parked the Razor Crest.

“Are you alright?” she asked him once they were climbing the ramp to the Crest. Din nodded.

At this point, Ruu’Eva evidently decided he had been good enough for the day, and began kicking against Imogen’s sternum, trying to get to his dad. Din finally let out a noise, a small huffing chuckle escaping through his modulator as he gently unwrapped the sling from Imogen’s chest and picked Ruu’Eva up.

“Hey, womp rat,” he greeted, bouncing the green child in his arms. Ruu’Eva giggled happily, and Imogen smiled fondly at the pair, slipping past them.

“Dibs on fresher first!” she called as she slipped behind the metal door, giggling as she heard a put out “hey!” from Din. Imogen quickly washed the grime of the day, including the blood of her earlier victims, off her body and was soon exiting the fresher wearing one of Din’s long sleeved shirts, and only the shirt. She threw Din a smile as she set her pile of dirty clothes down in the little crate they had dedicated to laundry, gesturing with her head towards the fresher.

“Your turn,” she prompted, and Din was quick to deposit Ruu’Eva into her arms and rush into the fresher. Ruu’Eva grumbled as his dad left, and Imogen pouted jokingly at him. “Awe, am I not good enough for you?” she spun him around, causing him to giggle. 

For the next couple minutes Imogen sat on her cot with Ruu’Eva, who kept looking at the fresher door, ready for Din to come back out. “He’ll be out soon, okay?” she cooed at him, and the baby squealed before letting out a raspberry. Imogen gasped, offended. “I taught you that so you could do it to Din!” she whined. “Not me!” Ruu’Eva just giggled. Imogen let out a little _hmph_ , setting Ruu’Eva down on the ground and rifling through the blankets of his area for his stuffed bantha toy. “Ah ha!” she procured it and gave it to the small child, who let out a happy coo and waddled off to sit in a corner, babbling to his bantha.

“You taught him to blow raspberries?” Din’s voice sounded, and Imogen jumped, spinning around to see him coming out of the fresher, depositing his armor by the door.

“How are you so quiet?” she mumbled, hearing Ruu’Eva’s happy squeal as he waddled over to his dad as fast as he could, grabbing his leg and looking up at him with a cute smile.

“Practice,” he chuckled, lifting Ruu’Eva and striding a couple steps to embrace Imogen. Imogen’s eyes narrowed as she stood on her tiptoes, grunting with the effort of trying to tap her forehead to his.

“You’re too tall,” she grumbled, and Din laughed, bringing his helmet down and lightly placing their foreheads together. “I’ll need to get myself a new Mandalorian,” 

“It’s not like there are a lot of short Mandalorians, _cyare_ ,” he said, and Imogen huffed as she rolled her eyes.

“Maybe I’ll look into getting one of those height increasing surgeries,” she joked, but Din’s arms tensed around her.

“No,” he growled, resting the chin of his helmet on top of her head. “You’re perfect,” 

“Even if I need you to reach high stuff for me?” Imogen prodded with a cheeky grin, and Din nodded.

“Especially because you need me to reach high stuff for you,” he reassured, and Imogen giggled softly, the clan of three staying calmly in each other's arms for a couple minutes. Eventually, Imogen had to pull away with a regretful look on her face.

“I’m hungry,” she mumbled, and Din laughed, going to their makeshift kitchen and grabbing a couple of ration packets.

“Me too,” he agreed, giving Ruu’Eva back to Imogen and ascending to the cockpit. “I’ll come back down as soon as I’m done,” he told her.


	2. Dantooine

The quarry was on Dantooine.

Honestly, Imogen didn’t blame him for choosing to hide from his pursuers here. From a strategic standpoint, it wasn’t the best, the flat grasslands not great for hiding or running from someone, but scenically, it was a beautiful planet.

“Do you think he can swim?” she asked Din as he was gearing up to capture their latest quarry. His helmet snapped over to stare at her.

“I don’t know…” nervous hesitation was in his voice. “Are you planning on finding out?”

“Yeah, figured I’d throw him into the nearest lake and see if he floats,” Imogen joked with a large grin, tickling at Ruu’Eva’s face as he let out a loud giggling squeal. “How’d you like that, Ruu’Eva?” she asked, and the baby blinked his huge eyes at her, the cutest little smile on his face.

“Please don’t,” Din sighed, though Imogen could hear the fond exasperation in his tone even through the modulator of his helmet.

“I won’t, dear,” she reassured him, walking up to him and thunking her head on his chest, as she had taken to doing instead of touching foreheads, he was so much taller than her. “But I am gonna go for a swim, and he’s joining me,” Din nodded, arms raising to pull her tight to his chest before he put on his cuirass.

“Be safe,” he said, and Imogen giggled, shaking her head.

“I should be saying that to you, bounty hunter,” she countered, and though Imogen couldn’t see it, she was sure he was rolling his eyes at her as he sighed.

Soon enough they were pulling away and Imogen was walking down the ramp of the Crest with one of the scratchy shower towels draped over her shoulder and Ruu’Eva walking beside her. He was adamant about walking, not wanting to be carried, so Imogen knew that it would be a while before they reached the river that was only a five minute walk away for her.

Din watched his  _ riduur _ and  _ ad’ika _ leave, fastening his cuirass over his chest before stepping off the Razor Crest as well. He could still see the very top of Imogen’s head, her brown hair down and flying in the wind, and he smiled beneath his helmet at the sight before turning in the opposite direction, heading towards a small encampment his quarry was hiding out in.

It was a relatively easy quarry, the poor mythrol not even attempting to fight the armored hunter. Din found himself not even needing to pull his blaster the whole time, slapping the binders on the mythrol man’s wrists and tugging him back to the Crest. Unlike the last mythrol bounty Din had encountered, this one was silent, not attempting to bribe his way out or make awkward small talk as he was brought in, instead he had a blank look on his face as he stumbled after the Mandalorian. He was thankful for this, while he enjoyed talking to Imogen and a select few others, quarries who attempted to speak with him grated on his nerves like nothing else. Small talk was bad enough, but with a quarry who he would be freezing in carbonite in the near future and handing in for credits? Terrible and tactless on the part of the bounty.

The mythrol was shoved in the carbon freezer without much ceremony, and Din turned and began to walk in the direction Imogen and Ruu’Eva had gone off in. They had spent a day on Dantooine prior to him apprehending the bounty, and Din had been with Imogen when they found a nice little pond. It was pretty, and Din was sure that this was where Imogen had taken Ruu’Eva to swim.

His hypothesis proved correct as he approached the pond and heard the giggles of both his  _ ad’ika _ and  _ riduur _ accompanied by small splashes.

“Very good!” Imogen was saying to Ruu’Eva, and as the pair came into view Din was shocked to see Imogen directly in front of Ruu’Eva in the center of the small pond, not supporting him at all. The small green child was treading water like a champ and Din was impressed at his foundling’s aquatic ability. Maybe his species were adept swimmers?

Ruu’Eva was soon doggy paddling away from Imogen, not that he was able to put much distance between them, the woman easily following him. Ruu’Eva was squealing loudly, heading towards his  _ buir _ , and Imogen looked up and saw the glint of beskar, knowing where he was headed.

“Look who’s back!” she gasped, swooping Ruu’Eva into her arms and swimming the rest of the way back, stepping out of the water and quickly crossing to Din. It was only then that Din noticed the clothing laid on the rocks nearby, and he was startled to see Imogen in only a chest wrapping and her panties, while Ruu’Eva was completely bare. “Went well?” she asked as she walked up to him, and Din found himself at a loss for words watching as her breasts swayed as she walked, and the slight jiggle of her thighs. “Din?” Imogen called, directly in front of him now, and biting her lip nervously at his silence. “Are you alright?”

“I’m good,  _ cyar’ika _ ,” Din was quick to assure her, grasping her shoulders and pulling her almost bare, dripping torso to his cuirass. She squeaked.

“Cold!” she gasped, pulling away and handing Ruu’Eva to him. She went to go grab her shirt, but Din’s hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. She stopped, gazing at him curiously and tilting her head, and Din said nothing, simply sitting on the ground and beginning to unfasten his armor, laying it beside him piece by piece until he was only in his helmet and the dark leather pants and black shirt he wore under the armor.

Wordlessly he tugged Imogen to sit on his lap, Ruu’Eva being placed in hers, and Din’s arms circled possessively around Imogen’s waist.

“ _ Gar mesh’la, cyare _ ,” he murmured, and Imogen squirmed slightly in his lap, shifting so her head laid back against his shoulder. The couple sighed as their bodies relaxed against one another, and Imogen’s head tilted to plant a kiss on the sliver of his neck that was just visible between his collar and helmet.

“I love you,” Imogen breathed out, eyes drooping as she basked in the warmth of the midday sun and her mate’s body.

“I love you too,” Din responded, arms tightening briefly around her waist.

“Do you think we could relax here for a bit?” Imogen asked, eyes opening into slits to gaze at her  _ riduur _ .

“What’re we doing right now?” Din countered, and Imogen snorted, tapping his thigh in a half hearted reprimand.

“No, I mean for a couple days, on Dantooine,” she elaborated, and Din tensed in thought. He had been on edge about staying in one place for any period of time since they had found out on Canto Bight that Imogen had a price on her head as well, even if it was just her species. “Please?” she breathed, picking up Ruu’Eva and twisting in Din’s lap to face him, both mother and odd foundling son giving him a pitiful case of puppy eyes.

“I suppose,” he heaved out a big sigh, and Imogen grinned, kissing all over his helmet in elation.

“Thank you!” she squealed, and his hands squeezed at her hips.

“Only a couple of days though,” Imogen nodded.

“Of course!” she placed another kiss on his helmet where his lips would be before nuzzling into his neck. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mando'a Translations  
> Riduur - Spouse  
> Adi'ika - Child, little one  
> Buir - Parent  
> Cyar'ika - Beloved; Darling  
> Gar Mesh'la - You're beautiful  
> Cyare - Beloved


	3. Dantoiine II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Briefest mention of sexual assault

“Ruu’Eva?” Imogen called, uncovering her eyes and looking around the hull of the Razor Crest, a gentle smile on her face. “Where are you hiding?” she asked, getting a quiet giggle in response. Her head tilted, eyes darting to the crate from which the giggle had come from, before stomping away from it. “Could he be… here?” she asked loudly, letting out a silly gasp as she pretended to search around her cot. More giggles followed.

The cot was mostly unused at this point, Imogen spending most nights in Din’s bed, so now it was mostly just used as a place to put Imogen’s stuff. 

“No?” she pretended to sigh in disappointment, turning and walking back over to where she heard Ruu’Eva’s poorly muffled giggles. She turned her head away so it sounded like she was somewhere else. “How about…” she swiftly dove arms first into the crate, grabbing the green child and pulling him to her chest. “Gotcha!” she laughed, and Ruu’Eva squealed in surprised delight, his tiny clawed hands immediately tangling in her loose hair. The child blinked sleepily, and Imogen grinned at him. “Time for a nap?” she asked, knowing not to expect an answer, and she turned and went to place Ruu’Eva in his little area, a gentle smile on her face as she tucked him in.

Imogen’s nose crinkled as she shut the hatch to Ruu’Eva’s pseudo-room, trying to figure out what the new scent on the ship was. It had appeared suddenly, and she couldn’t make out a lot of things-just generic blaster powder and leather, though not that of her Mandalorian’s.

“Wh-” before she could even call out to Din to ask, a large hand came around from over her shoulder, muffling her noise of surprise and covering both her mouth and nose. Imogen struggled, kicking her legs back to try to throw whoever was at her back, but the person held strong, a grunt coming from them as their opposite hand quickly traded places with the one over Imogen’s face. This hand held a cloth in it, and Imogen smelt something sickly sweet before her eyes began to droop. She let out another noise of distress as her muscles stopped responding, and heard a deep, dark chuckle from above and behind her as the image of the Crest faded from her view.

When Imogen came to, she was instantly aware of the putrid smell of piss and sweat that permeated in the air. She coughed, her eyes squinting in the dim light to try to figure out where she was, and she whimpered when she saw the durasteel bars of a jail cell.

“Where am I?” she called, hearing groaning and knowing she wasn’t the only one here. She tugged at the restraints keeping her wrists against her sides and her feet against the legs of the chair she was in, straining her neck to see if she could see anyone.“Hello?” a familiar devaronian came into view on the other side of the bars, and Imogen flinched as he scowled at her.

“Shut up!” he commanded, and Imogen set her jaw, deciding it wasn’t worth it to argue with the colossal beast in Undo’s employ. She glared at him as his scowl morphed into a smirk. “Or I’ll have to find something else for your mouth to do,” he suggested with a crude thrust of his hips, and Imogen turned her head away with a grimace, holding back the bile in her throat at the thought of what he could do to her. 

There was silence for a couple of minutes, and Imogen used that time to think. Ruu’Eva! Where was he?

“Where is the child?” she demanded, and the devaronian seemed to set aside his previous warning in favor of answering her question.

“Hell if I know,” he shrugged. “All we want is you,” Imogen’s brows furrowed in confusion at this, and the devaronian smirked. “I don’t do babies, never really my thing,” he continued. “Last I saw he was still in that bed. Doesn’t matter to me… Our associate, however,” his smirk twisted into something more sinister and demonic, accentuated by the large horns protruding from his forehead. “He seems to have a vendetta against your shiny boyfriend, so I wouldn’t count on him being alive long enough to rescue you,” Imogen’s brows furrowed further, wondering who their associate could be. Surely Din had made plenty of enemies in his time as a bounty hunter, but to set a trap by capturing her and not the baby?

“I suppose you’re now wondering who this ominous associate could be,” a deep voice intoned from the shadows behind the devaronian, and Imogen jumped as a dark skinned man stepped into the light, proudly sporting an imperial officer’s uniform. She stayed silent however, and simply glared at the man who she now assumed was the ‘ominous associate’. “Moff Gideon, pleasure to make your acquaintance,” the man smiled at her, though his eyes were dead and the smile on his face had absolutely nothing pleasant about it.

_ Moff Gideon _ . Imogen’s eyes widened in horror.  _ Didn’t he die? _ Apparently not, if the man in front of her was anything to go by.

“I’m sure your precious Din Djarin thought me dead,” he smirked as Imogen did a double take at hearing her fiancé’s name. “Pity he didn’t manage to  _ finish the job _ ,” he said, a sinister tone in his voice and Imogen got the double meaning as his face twisted at ‘finish the job’. Ruu’Eva was originally a bounty, after all. Gideon nodded to the devaronian, and the hulking alien fumbled with a rusty key, opening the door to Imogen’s cell and allowing Gideon to step inside before closing it behind him. Imogen glared at him, and he smiled condescendingly at her. “Such a mean expression for such a pretty face,” he teased, and Imogen was tempted to spit in his face, though she curbed the urge. “A pity it’s destined for Kessel,” Imogen finally showed emotion at that, her eyes widening in horror as she began to squirm anew, tugging at her restraints and trying in vain to get as far away as possible from her captor. She whimpered as he just continued to step closer to her, taking his sweet time and relishing in the anticipation and winces from Imogen at each step he took.

His steps halted, thankfully, at the sound of blaster fire from above. Imogen schooled her expression, trying not to hope too hard that it was Din was here to rescue her, but Gideon growled.

“Damn,” he muttered, turning away from her with a swish of his cape, and motioning for the devaronian thug to open the door once more. He strode out of the cell, turning back to Imogen with a saccharine smile as the hinges of the door creaked, swinging shut behind him. “I do hate to cut our time short,” he sighed dramatically, and Imogen just continued to glare at him. “But your Mandalorian certainly knows how to spoil one’s fun,” he groaned, turning once more with a dramatic swish and exiting Imogen’s view. “Keep an eye on her,” she heard, and the devaronian nodded so she could only assume Gideon was telling him to guard her.

The thug turned back to her with a smirk.

“Your boyfriend’s gonna die,” he taunted, leaning forward so his forehead rested against the cell bars. “Painfully,” Imogen shook her head at him, and he laughed. “Not even a Mandalorian can hold his own against 200 Imperial soldiers,” Imogen didn’t show it, but the number shocked her, and she felt an inkling of doubt nag at the back of her brain. She pushed it aside, knowing Din must have scoped out the place and had a plan, or at least she hoped he did.

A clatter sounded, and the devaronian’s head snapped to the side, his eyes narrowing and hand falling to the blaster strapped to his side.

“ _ Ad’ika _ ?” Imogen heard, and her eyes widened at the sound of Paz Vizla’s voice.

“Paz?” she shouted back, and heard a deep booming laugh as the devaronian was shot with a clean blaster bolt through the head, thudding footsteps approaching her cell door. Paz’s hulking frame came into view, and he effortlessly kicked down the cell door, rushing to untie Imogen’s limbs from their restraints.

“You alright?” he asked, and Imogen nodded, her brows furrowed and mouth opening to question what he was doing here. “He called us,” Paz was quick to intercept her question, and Imogen’s brows stayed furrowed.

“Us?” she asked, and Paz just chuckled, shaking his helm at her as he tugged on her hand to get her to stand, keeping a hold on her as he led her out of what appeared to be a dungeon. Imogen saw a rodian skeleton in the cell next to hers, and the next cell which was right before the stairwell housed a sickly human woman, clothes in tatters. Paz tugged on her hand once more, and Imogen stumbled up the steps with him, eyes widening when she saw who was guarding the door to the dungeon’s stairwell.

“Cara?” she gasped, and the ex shock trooper smirked at her, shooting her a wink as they began to rush down the halls.

“Hey,” she greeted as if this were another Tuesday, and Imogen’s head shook as a smile graced her lips, hearing shouting from a couple hallways down.

“There were two Mandalorians!” a man’s voice shouted.

“Where’s the other one?” another’s panicked one followed, and the trio was quick to rush towards the voices, seeing Din single handedly taking on what must have been a whole platoon of Storm Troopers effortlessly. Paz laughed, running in to join his clan mate.

“Here!” he cheered, pulling out a large axe and swinging it down on a trooper’s shoulder. The trooper’s scream was short, dying almost instantly, and Paz quickly turned to the next, laughing as he cut down his enemies.

Imogen went to help, but her knees buckled and she found herself leaning against Cara’s side, a whimper leaving her.

“You good?” the taller woman asked, and Imogen nodded softly.

“I think they drugged me,” she responded, and Din’s helmet snapped up at the sound of her voice, rushing towards her and killing troopers as he went.

“ _ Cyare _ !” he called, coming to stand in front of her and helmet snapping up and down as he scanned her from head to toe. A heavy hand came to rest on the back of her neck as he pulled her in for a forehead bump, staying there for only a few seconds before he released her and turned, shooting an approaching officer in the chest. “Are you alright?” he asked, and Imogen nodded.

“I am now,” she smiled at him, and he nodded in return, wrapping an arm around her shoulders to support her and beginning to lead her out of whatever facility they were in. Cara blasted anyone who got too close, and Paz was up ahead of them, clearing a path with his battle axe. 

“Ruu’Eva-” she began to ask, and Din squeezed her shoulders comfortingly, hand running up and down her upper arm.

“On Sorgan, with Omera,” he soothed, and Imogen sighed in relief, shoulders sagging at the loss of that stress.

Soon enough the group burst through a large door, and Imogen’s eyes squinted at the retreating Tie Fighter against the sun. Moff Gideon would live to fight another day…

They made it back to the crest, and Imogen and Din retreated to his quarters behind the cockpit, Imogen’s system still working out whatever drug they had used on her causing her to still be exhausted. She rested against Din’s chest in his cot, and before her eyes could droop too far she spoke up.

“Din?” she murmured, and he squeezed her tighter against his chest.

“Yes,  _ cyar’ika _ ?” he responded.

“It was Moff Gideon,” Din’s entire form went rigid, and he sat up, hands coming to rest on Imogen’s shoulders as she sat up with him.

“Moff Gideon is dead,” he said forcefully, helmet tilting, but Imogen shook her head.

“He survived Nevarro,” she told him. “He was there,” she insisted, and Din sighed heavily, laying back down.

“So Ruu’Eva isn’t as safe as we thought,” he murmured, and Imogen whimpered.

“Neither are you,”

“What?” Din’s helmet tilted in confusion.

“They had the chance to take Ruu’Eva, I had just put him to bed when they got me,” Imogen explained, and Din made a confused noise.

“That doesn’t make any sense,” he argued, and Imogen shook her head, eyes wide with fear for her mate.

“He seemed more interested in getting to you,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mando'a Translations  
> Ad'ika - Little One  
> Cyare - Beloved  
> Cyar'ika - Darling; Beloved


	4. Sorgan

“It’ll be okay,  _ cyare _ ,” Din reassured Imogen with a squeeze to her hand as they began their descent to the field he parked the Razor Crest in whenever they were on Sorgan. Imogen nodded, biting her lip and trying to believe him. She wanted to believe him, because if there was anyone in the galaxy who could defeat Moff Gideon it would be a Mandalorian, and out of all the Mandalorians the most worthy would be Din, but they had thought he had succeeded in killing him once and it turned out that the cockroach had survived. 

Din gently lowered them into the field, and he had barely touched down when Cara was pressing the button to lower the ramp and rushing to get back to her fiancée. Imogen shook her head to try to clear it of thoughts of Moff Gideon, and distracted herself by watching the reunion between Cara and Omera unfold. She smiled fondly as she saw Omera sprinting towards the Crest, only speeding up when she saw Cara. It was like something out of one of those romance vids Imogen could remember watching with her brother and his wife, with the couple dramatically running into each other’s arms, and Cara did not disappoint, lifting and twirling Omera before pulling her into a sound kiss.

“I take it the rescue mission went well?” Imogen heard Omera ask after they had pulled away. Din had an arm wrapped around her waist, his large hand possessively cupping her hip as he led her down the ramp of the Crest, Paz opting to stay on the Crest while they picked up Ruu’Eva.

“Yeah, we got her,” Cara confirmed, and Omera grinned widely, turning towards the ramp. The farmer’s eyes lit up at the sight of Imogen walking down the ramp with Din, with no visible injuries. She was quick to break free of Cara’s arms and walk the short distance to the Crest, wrapping her arms around the slightly shorter woman and taking her out of the Mandalorian’s arms. Imogen giggled at the comical way his shoulders slumped when his hand slipped from her waist, before turning her attention to Omera and returning her embrace, the women wrapping their arms tightly around each other.

“You’re alright?” Omera asked, pulling away slightly to scan her eyes up and down Imogen’s form. “You’re not hurt?” Imogen nodded with a small smile.

“I’m fine,” she reassured her, pulling away completely and peaking over Omera’s shoulders. “Where’s Ruu’Eva?” she asked, unable to hide her anxiousness to see her child. Omera smiled kindly, not offended that Imogen was practically brushing her off since she too, was a mother.

“He’s playing with Winta and the other younglings,” Omera said, jerking her head to the side as she turned to motion for Imogen to follow her. 

As they reached the end of the clearing, Imogen turned back to shoot Din a look.  _ Are you coming? _ It seemed to say. He had stayed rooted to the spot Imogen had left him in, and for a moment Imogen cursed the helmet since she couldn’t read his face. Body language could only get you so far in reading a person, and the only thing Imogen could see from this distance was the slight tension in his shoulders, which could mean a great many things. He could be just as anxious as her to get back to Ruu’Eva, he could be thinking about Moff Gideon, he could just be a little irritated that his  _ riduur _ had left his arms. Imogen had no clue.

“Sweetie!” she called, catching herself before she could call him by his true name. The fearsome warrior jumped at her voice, and Imogen sent him a small smile when the T of his visor turned to face her. “You coming?” he gave her a jerky nod in response, finally moving his feet and leisurely approaching the village a couple paces behind the others. Imogen nodded in return, satisfied, before turning and continuing at a brisk pace towards the village, fingers twitching in the anticipation of holding Ruu’Eva.

Logically, Imogen knew she hadn’t been gone more than two days, but when she had woken up in that prison cell she had begun to prepare herself to be in there for a long time. She had hoped Din would come to her rescue, but another part of her willed him not to risk it, wanting Ruu’Eva to at least have him if she couldn’t return to them. And she hadn’t had a clue at that point how much time had passed, or how long it would take Din to find where they were keeping her. So the staggering heaviness that came with the resignation of not seeing your child for a long time, if ever again, was still crushing Imogen’s chest.

Imogen could have cried tears of relief when the village came into view and one of the first sounds she heard was Ruu’Eva’s happy squealing as he played with the other children. Her eyes flitted around, quickly finding the wrinkly green head of her and Din’s odd foundling child, and before she really knew what she was doing she found herself running to him and scooping him up into her arms. 

Ruu’Eva let out a small grunt of confusion before his adorably large brown eyes connected with Imogen’s own purple ones. He giggled, and Imogen beamed at him, raising his face to her lips and kissing him all over it, relishing in the happy sounds that escaped his mouth as he squirmed.

“Ruu’Eva,” Imogen breathed, tucking him against her chest once she had given him enough kisses. Her eyes slid closed and she rested her chin against his head, a hand unconsciously rising to stroke one of his giant ears. She barely registered the sound of Winta ushering the other children away to play in some other area, allowing their tender reunion to continue uninterrupted. She definitely  _ did _ register, however, armored arms encircling her waist from behind and pulling her against a beskar clad chest. She heard Din release a soft sigh, his helmet leaning down to rest the crown against the top of her head.

A pang of warmth spread through Imogen’s chest, and her smile widened as she basked in the domesticity of Din’s simple act, encircling his  _ aliit _ in his arms like this in public. 

“I love you,” Din whispered in her ear, and Imogen hummed in happiness, lifting her head and tilting her face back towards the Mandalorian.

“I love you, too,” she responded, giggling when Ruu’Eva babbled up at them, wanting in on the conversation. “And of course I love you, Ruu’Eva,” she gasped in a silly voice, raising him to her face for some more kisses, and a quick huff escaped through the modulator of Din’s helmet as he chuckled at the adorable display of affection.

Too soon for either of the couple’s liking, Cara was approaching them.

“Mando, you said there was something important we needed to talk about?” she asked, and Imogen felt Din’s chest heave with an apprehensive sigh.

“Yes,” he said simply, nodding towards Cara’s hut, and the ex shocktrooper led the way there, the clan of three following behind her while Din had his arm around Imogen’s shoulders. Cara had barely closed the door behind the group when Din was dropping the bombshell.

“Gideon’s alive,” he said, and Cara’s eyes widened in surprise, a slight cough escaping her throat.

“What?” she sputtered, peering between Imogen and Din with her brows pinched together in confusion. “I thought he died on Nevarro,” she shook her head, and Din sighed.

“We all did,” he confirmed, helmet shaking up and down in a nod, before he turned his head to look at Imogen. “But he’s the one who took her,” Cara’s gaze flicked to Imogen, who nodded in confirmation.

“He was speaking to me just as you guys showed up,” she told the taller woman, and Cara’s head tilted. “He came in my cell…” Imogen took in a deep breath, shuddering, and Din’s arm tightened briefly around her shoulders in an attempt to comfort her. “I think he was going to take my fangs out,” Imogen found herself squeezing her eyes shut, turning and tucking her face into the soft space between Din’s pauldron and neck at the thought of what almost happened to her.

“Why would he-” Cara began to ask, but cut herself off, thinking better of it. Imogen, however, had already heard the question, and refused to shy away from the explanation.

“He was going to send me to Kessel,” she told Cara, Din tensing as she hadn’t told him that specific detail yet. “It’s where the Imperials sent most of my species, and they’re still hunting us,” Cara’s eyes widened as she looked at Din, as if to ask if he knew about that. He remained still, simply bringing his free arm up to wrap around Imogen as well, pulling her more against his chest in comfort.

“ _ Gar morut’yc, cyare _ ,” he murmured to her, and Imogen nodded.

“ _ Ni kyr _ ,” she agreed, and Cara’s gaze snapped to Din’s visor once more in surprise at hearing the girl speak Mando’a. Before she could question the pair, however, Ruu’Eva decided that it was the perfect time to let everyone know he wanted to go to bed, a large yawn escaping his tiny body, and Imogen pulled away from Din slightly to smile at the green child. “Sleepy, Ruu’Eva?” she asked, and he just smacked his lips, eyes becoming slits as he struggled to stay awake.

“We’ll talk more tomorrow,” Cara said, ushering them out of her and Omera’s hut. “Night, squirt,” she gave Ruu’Eva an affectionate scritch between his ears, and Imogen smiled at the warrior before she turned with Din to go to the hut they had stayed in last time.

“You didn’t tell me about Kessel,” Din muttered as they approached the hut, and Imogen frowned.

“I just wanted to be held,” she murmured back, squeezing Din’s hand that was on her shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” he sighed, opening the door to their hut, and Imogen made a noise of confusion as she tilted her head at him, the clan of three entering the hut as the door swung shut behind them.

“What for?” she asked, genuinely confused, and Din huffed, pulling away from her.

“I failed you,” he turned to face away from her, and Imogen shook her head, reaching out and tugging on his hand to get him to face her. He did, but his visor stayed aimed away from her.

“Din,” Imogen sighed, hand going from his to cup his helmet where his cheek would be. “You did no such thing,” 

Din began to argue, but Imogen shushed him, her eyebrows pinched together in a glare.

“No!” she pressed, hugging Ruu’Eva tighter to her as he yawned once more. “What happened wasn’t your fault,” she continued. “And you came to get me, right?” Imogen sighed, her head tilting down as she waited for Din to bump his forehead to hers. “I’m okay, Ruu’Eva’s okay, you’re okay, right? Everything turned out alright,” she reassured him, and Din sighed, his shoulders finally relaxing, as one of his hands came up to cup the back of her neck and the other disappeared from Imogen’s view.

Imogen startled when a pair of lips brushed against the crown of her head, but Din’s hand kept her head right where it was.

“Eyes closed,  _ cyar’ika _ ,” he reminded her, and Imogen’s eyes squeezed shut. “ _ Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum _ ,” he said, lips brushing the crown of Imogen’s head, and she sighed happily, relaxing against him.

“ _ Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum _ ,” she parrotted, bumping Din’s chin aside so she could place a kiss on his neck. “C’mere,” she whined, puckering her lips, and Din chuckled, leaning down to give her a chaste kiss on the lips. Imogen pouted when he pulled away, hearing him put his helmet back on. “Din,” she whined, opening her eyes once he patted her neck and released her.

“We need to put the little one to bed,” he laughed at the put out look on her face, taking Ruu’Eva from her and bouncing him a couple times. “Goodnight, little womp rat,” he bade the child, laying him in the crib they had for him in the hut. Imogen followed, repeating the same words and kissing him softly on top of his head. She smiled down at Ruu’Eva as his eyes drifted shut, before turning to her  _ riduur _ with a suggestive smirk.

Din chuckled good naturedly as her hands shot out and began taking off his beskar, his hands joining in to assist her, but he stopped her when she went to plant kisses on his neck, seeing the slump of her shoulders and how tired she was.

“We’ll have plenty of time later,  _ cyar’ika _ ,” he reassured her, tugging her onto the bed and pulling her onto his chest. “Sleep, now,” he urged, and Imogen pouted, but didn’t fight him, relaxing against the planes of his chest as a hand tangled itself in his.

“Goodnight, Din,”

“Goodnight, Imogen,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mando'a Translations  
> Cyare - Beloved  
> Riduur - Spouse  
> Aliit - Family  
> Gar morut'yc - You're safe  
> Ni kyr - I know  
> Cyar'ika - Darling; Beloved  
> Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum - I love you


	5. Nevarro

Much to everyone’s disappointment, the clan of the three couldn’t stay on Sorgan long. The knowledge that Moff Gideon was still out there made Paz anxious to get back to the covert, and Din could feel himself getting antsy as well. If Moff Gideon was still a threat, people would still be after the child. They couldn’t afford to stay in one place for too long.

“I’ll miss you, Ruu’Eva,” Winta gave the little green baby a tight parting hug when she saw Imogen come to collect him the day after they arrived.

“Don’t worry,” Imogen soothed, gently taking him from the young girl. “If we all get our way, he’ll be back to play with you and the others soon,” Winta gave Imogen a teary smile, arms flopping awkwardly, and Imogen returned the smile. “Come here,” she prompted, opening her arms, and the young girl was quick to wrap her arms around Imogen’s waist. Imogen placed a soft kiss on the crown of Winta’s head before pulling away and turning to her mother and soon to be step mother. Cara gave her a wide smile, reaching out her arm, but Imogen surprised her by giving her a tight hug.

“Woah!” she gasped as the smaller woman bowled into her, but quickly relaxed and wrapped her arms around her.

“Thank you,” Imogen muttered, and Cara nodded. Neither of them needed the clarification of what exactly she was thanking Cara for. Omera joined the hug, arms wrapping around both her fiancée and Imogen, and the three stood there for a moment, basking in each other’s company, unknowing when or if they would see each other again.

“ _ Cyar’ika _ ,” Din called from a couple feet behind them, having just finished loading up and preparing the Crest with Paz. Imogen pulled away from Cara and Omera, sending them both a large smile before turning to her  _ riduur _ . “Are you ready?” he asked, and Imogen nodded, holding Ruu’Eva tightly to her chest as she tucked herself into his outstretched arm, allowing him to keep her pressed against his side as they walked to the Crest. Paz was waiting for them at the ramp, arms crossed over his chest and shoulders tense. He didn’t say a word when they stepped onto the ramp, simply turning and climbing up to the cockpit, slumping into the copilot's seat and waiting for Din to come up.

Din stopped at the ladder just under the cockpit, pulling Imogen close to him and tapping his forehead to hers quickly.

“Ready?” he repeated, and Imogen nodded.

“Let’s go,” he turned with a flourish of his cape and ascended to the cockpit, and before long Imogen felt the thrusters start and the Razor Crest leaving the ground. Ruu’Eva cooed happily, and she smiled down at him.

“Did you miss the Crest?” she asked him, bouncing him as she walked around, letting him make sure everything was in a suitable place. He babbled angrily when he saw a toy that Paz had tripped over on the flight back to Sorgan. It was his bantha stuffie, a little smushed, and definitely not where he left it in his little play area Din and Imogen had tried to section off. Of course, with Ruu’Eva’s odd abilities, trying to limit his play area did not work, and within an hour of placing him in the play pen he was usually out and about with free reign of the ship once more. Imogen set Ruu’Eva down, allowing him to pick up the bantha and hug it to his chest, babbling at it as if it were a sentient being. “Or maybe you just missed your bantha,” Imogen teased, crouching down next to him. He giggled up at her, a clawed hand leaving his bantha to tap her leg. “Stars you’re cute,” Imogen muttered, lifting him and cuddling him to his chest once more. He cooed, relaxing into her with his bantha still held tightly in one hand.

* * *

A couple of hours later, the Razor Crest landed in the lava fields just outside Nevarro. Imogen set Ruu’Eva in the pram as Paz and Din came down from the cockpit, setting it to follow her.

“Shall we?” she asked the two mandalorian warriors, who both gave her jerky nods. Din pressed a button on his vambrace to lower the ramp, and they quickly descended, the ramp rolling up behind them. She began walking to the city, but Din wrapped his large hand around her upper arm, stopping her. “What?” she asked.

“We’re going another way to the covert,” Din said, tugging her slightly, and she nodded and began to follow the two mandalorians. Paz was slightly ahead of them, and Din had let go of Imogen’s arm. She found herself grabbing onto Din’s cape, as a small child held onto a parent’s shirt for fear of losing them in a crowd, and Din chuckled. “You have your own cape,  _ cyare _ ,” he reminded her teasingly, and Imogen pouted.

“That your way of telling me to keep my hands to myself?” she shot back, and a puff of static escaped Din’s modulator as he huffed at her. Without even looking back, his hand found hers and tugged her forward and against his side.

“That’s my way of telling you not to hide,” he murmured low as he leaned down so the lip of his helmet was right at her ear. Imogen shuddered, but Din pulled back up to his full height quickly. As if on cue, Paz looked over his shoulder.

“No funny business happening back there, right?” he teased, and Imogen giggled a bit.

“Depends,” she called back. “How do you define funny business?” Paz snorted with laughter, the beskar of his helmet glinting as it shook back and forth in mirth, but he offered no response. Soon the group found themselves coming to the entrance of a cave. Unlike the one Din had told her about using when IG-11 sacrificed himself for him and Ruu’Eva, this one had no lava river. A couple of meters into the cave, the group came to a heavy metal door. Paz pressed a button disguised as a rock near the door, and a panel popped out, prompting him to input a code of numbers. After a moment, a beep was heard from the panel, and the door slid open.

Din ushered Imogen inside, the pram following her, and he looked around quickly before walking in himself, the door sliding shut behind him. The group spent a tense moment looking at each other, trying to decide how to go about the situation. Eventually, Din spoke.

“We should go to the Armorer,” he said, and Paz nodded. They turned down a hallway, and continued walking along for a surprising distance before the sounds of life could be heard. They passed by a Mandalorian who was sitting in the hall cleaning her blaster, she nodded to them as they passed. Imogen’s hand sought out Din’s as they turned down another hallway, nervous about the whole situation. They needed to inform the covert about Moff Gideon, which would mean Imogen would likely be reliving her brief time spent in his presence. It was less the man himself that gave her pause and more his threat of sending her to Kessel. She shuddered unconsciously, causing Din’s hand to squeeze hers a bit.

“You alright?” he asked lowly, and Imogen nodded.

“Yeah,” she whispered back, smiling as they passed a group of children. Some were of age and had sworn the creed, wearing helmets, but there were a couple who were so young that they had not made the choice yet. They were all playing together, and Imogen glanced at Ruu’Eva’s pram, seeing him looking at the children in awe. He paid special attention to the helmeted children, and Imogen realized that he probably wasn’t really aware of Mandalorians. She knew he understood a lot more than most would usually give him credit for, but his awed gaze at the helmets of the other children led Imogen to wonder if he knew that Din’s helmet was not his actual face.

Of course, she didn’t think it would matter much to Ruu’Eva, he loved his  _ buir _ regardless of if he had a metal face or a human, fleshy one.

“The hunter returns,” Imogen jumped in surprise at the sound of the Armorer’s voice, not having noticed that they had arrived at the forge. It was oddly quiet without the sound of the smelter at work, or the Armorer’s hammer artfully working the beskar.

“We have some bad news,” Din said, skipping the pleasantries, not that Imogen would be able to imagine any of the mandalorian warriors she knew taking part in small talk.

“Oh?” the Armorer prompted, gesturing for the group to sit down. Paz settled himself on a bench next to the door, and Din and Imogen sat on the one on the other side. The Armorer sat in a seat that was at the base of the smelter.

“Moff Gideon is alive,” Din said, and the Armorer made no move or sound to show she heard them, instead awaiting more information that she knew was coming. “He was the one who kidnapped Imogen, and now seems to have a personal vendetta against me as well as Ruu’Eva,” he explained, and the Armorer nodded.

“That is troubling indeed,” she muttered as if thought, turning to Paz.

“Your thoughts?” she asked, and Paz waited a moment before replying, gathering his thoughts.

“We need more information about the kid,” he said after a moment, and Imogen and Din both tilted their heads. “If we can figure out why Gideon and the remnants of the Empire want him so much, that’s less leverage they hold over us,” he explained his thought process, and Imogen nodded, seeing the reason.

“We’ve been searching,” Din said. “How are we going to find information?” it was then that an idea struck Imogen.

“Arvala 7,” she breathed, and Din hummed in confusion, helmet tilting down to look at her. “You found him on Arvala 7, right?” he nodded in confirmation. “But he was just a bounty at the time, so you didn’t really search the building or surrounding buildings for information?” Din’s shoulders straightened as he realized what she was getting at.

“You think where he was before could hold some information,”

“Yes,”

“It is a good starting point,” the Armorer said, nodding to Imogen, who gave her a soft smile in return. “We will be more watchful with this knowledge,” she said to Din. “You must continue your search,” Din nodded, standing up, and Imogen rose with him.

“Thank you,” Imogen said, and the Armorer nodded at the short woman.

“Good luck,” she responded, before turning to Din. “I wish to speak to the hunter alone, for a moment,” she said, and Paz and Imogen nodded, leaving the room and waiting outside the door. 

Imogen figured Din, who wasn’t one for sentiment with… anyone besides her really, wouldn’t stick around for saying goodbyes, so she took this time to give Paz a tight hug, surprising the hulking mandalorian.

“Thank you,” she said to him, and he nodded, reaching a gloved hand up to ruffle her hair.

“Anytime, squirt,” he responded light heartedly, and Imogen glared at him playfully.

“Keep that up, see what happens,” she muttered dangerously, and Paz just bellowed out a laugh.

* * *

In the forge, the Armorer appraised Din for a moment.

“When are you going to complete the  _ riduurok _ ?” she asked abruptly, and Din sputtered for a moment.

“What?” 

“Have you at least asked her?” the Armorer pressed, and Din froze for a moment before nodding.

“I’ve asked…” he groaned. “I was going to marry her on Dantooine,” his hands clenched into fists at the pure frustration at the timing of things. 

“Do it soon,” the Armorer urged him, and Din nodded.

“I will,” he sighed. “I just need to wait for the right… moment,” he cringed at the sentimentality, how soft he sounded, and the Armorer laughed softly at him.

“Why not when you get back to your ship?” she asked, and Din shook his head adamantly.

“Absolutely not,” he shot the idea down, and the Armorer tilted her head.

“Why not? Why wait?” she pressed, and Din shrugged, helmet tilting down and shoulders hunching. For once in his adult life, the mandalorian warrior appeared almost… meek.

“She deserves something nice, some _ where _ nice,” he said, and the Armorer nodded.

“It is commendable to want to give your  _ riduur _ the best,” she said. “But do not let time waste by waiting for the perfect moment,” she advised, and Din sighed. She was right, as usual. 

“This is why Imogen calls you my therapist,” he muttered, and the Armorer laughed, clapping him on the shoulder.

“Go, before I run out of wise words to say,” she nodded towards the door, and Din gave her one last nod before exiting the forge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mando'a Translations  
> Cyar’ika - Darling; Beloved
> 
> Riduur - Spouse
> 
> Cyare - Beloved
> 
> Buir - Parent
> 
> Riduurok - Marriage Agreement


	6. Arvala-7

“The place should be cleared out,” Din said as the Razor Crest approached Arvala-7. “So we should be able to land right where I found him,” Imogen nodded in acknowledgement, arms tightening around Ruu’Eva, who had tangled his little claws in her hair and was snoozing against her chest, as they entered the atmosphere.

Ruu’Eva’s ears perked up when he saw out the viewport, and Imogen’s brows furrowed, not sure what would have caused him to be so excited. He usually enjoyed watching them land, but all she saw were rolling sand dunes and rock planes. Nothing that would cause Ruu’Eva to crawl up Imogen’s chest to try to get a better look… unless…

“Do you think he knows where we are?” Imogen asked, and Din’s head tilted as he looked back at Imogen and Ruu’Eva. He could only glance for a moment, however, since they were quickly approaching the complex where Din had first found their foundling.

“He might,” Din shrugged. “Womprat probably knows a lot more than we give him credit for,” Imogen nodded, smiling down at Ruu’Eva.

“He  _ is _ older than us,” she giggled, placing a quick kiss on top of her green charge’s wrinkly head. Ruu’Eva cooed up at her.

* * *

The compound truly was abandoned. Bodies were still scattered around the courtyard from Din’s first visit, though their corpses had been picked clean, likely by Jawas or other scavengers. Ruu’Eva was in his pram which floated at Din’s side, and Imogen had closed the lid once she caught sight of the bodies. She could feel Din giving her a look, so she shrugged.

“I know he’s already seen this stuff, but I want to avoid it where we can,” she explained to him, and her companion nodded, continuing to walk towards the building in the center of the compound. An awkward hole had been burnt through the door, and Imogen almost tripped as she stepped over the metal left on the bottom.

“Easy,” Din cautioned as his hands reached out to brace her on her upper arms. She gave him a small smile, and he nodded, squeezing her arms once before letting go. Once she had her footing, Imogen opened the lid of the pram once more, and they were met with Ruu’Eva’s loud babbling. He was pointing around, and he stood, looking over the lip of his pram. Imogen giggled, lifting him to her chest. She schooled her face for a moment and brought him right up to her face.

“Be careful,” she warned, and Ruu’Eva cooed back at her, his hands coming up to cup her cheeks, and Imogen smiled brightly at her charge. She gently placed him on the floor, and he immediately began to toddle in the direction of some crates. “Where you going?” she asked, but Ruu’Eva ignored her, hoisting himself up onto a crate and then tugging aside a sheet. Din was still right next to Imogen, but he was looking around and didn’t see what was revealed. “Din,” Imogen muttered, her hand coming up to tug at his arm, and he turned with a grunt, about to ask what was up when he saw the book and small cube resting next to Ruu’Eva.

They approached the objects, and Imogen’s face twisted into a frown when she saw the book more clearly.

“Can you read that?” she asked, pointing at the scribbles on the cover, and Din shook his head. She grabbed it and flipped through the pages, seeing more of the strange writing, and groaned. “I hope the translator can get this,” she muttered, and Din sighed heavily, placing a hand on her shoulder as his other reached down to pick up the cube.

“I wouldn’t count on it,” he sighed, and Imogen nodded in defeat. Ruu’Eva squealed when Din picked up the cube, and both of their eyes widened as they looked down at him. Ruu’Eva gestured for the cube, and Din gently placed it in his outstretched claws. Imogen let out a gasp when the letters etched into one side of the cube began glowing. She tilted her head, trying to read it, and she was able to when Ruu’Eva’s claws shifted away from it.

“Food,” she read, and Ruu’Eva cooed excitedly. “Are you doing that?” she asked him, and his head nodded as he began bouncing himself. “You want food?” he nodded again, and Imogen looked up to Din with wide eyes. “This makes things so much easier,” she muttered, and he said nothing but nodded in agreement. Imogen gently picked Ruu’Eva up and propped him on her hip with a smile. “Can I see this?” she asked, and Ruu’Eva handed her the cube. On each face was a different word:  _ Food, Safe, Comfort, Fun, Move,  _ and _ Place _ . She didn’t understand what Ruu’Eva would be asking for with some of the words, but she figured that she would come to understand.

After she fed Ruu’Eva, Din climbed back onto the Crest with a sigh, dropping the book on a crate in the hull with a soft  _ thud _ .

“Find anything?” she asked, and he shook his head.

“The cube and the book were it,” he sighed, and Imogen mirrored it. Din’s shoulders slumped, and Imogen stood, circling around so she stood behind him. Gently Imogen began undoing his armor, starting with his pauldrons. They stood in silence as Imogen gently helped him out of his armor, and as soon as he had been reduced to his clothing and helmet Din spun around and pulled her into his chest. 

“I love you,” he murmured as he thunked his forehead against the top of her head, and Imogen smiled, wrapping her short arms around his torso and squeezing.

“I love you too,” she replied. “We’ll figure this out,” she said to him, and Din hummed.

**Author's Note:**

> Mando'a Translations  
> Cyare - Beloved


End file.
